Poll

Today's Opinions

For many years prior to the passage of the Affordable Care Act, I was an active and vocal proponent of universal health care. It always seemed to me that socializing our health risks worked better when everyone was part of the pool. I supported requirements at both the state and federal levels for people to have health insurance.

A half century ago in rural Pennsylvania, a woman named Clem spent her mornings immersed in the pungent smell of chlorine and the ornery noise of youngsters wakened too early.

Part drill instructor and part den mother, Clem preached water safety with the fervor of a country minister, and over the years she taught thousands of young charges how to swim. For the older students, the ones earning their lifeguard certification, this also meant a course in cardiopulmonary resuscitation.

As a boy I used to pass time on the school bus by counting street signs bearing names of classmates or family friends: Norman Lane. Willa Way. Lemasters Drive. Julie Lane. Granzella Road. Herzman Drive. What a novelty, I thought, to live in a community where roads are named after residents who are still living.

Anybody know where a guy can buy some crow meat? And while we’re at it, do any of you have a good crow recipe?

I confidently wrote last year that while Donald Trump’s and Bernie Sanders’ campaigns for president were showing signs of success, they couldn’t last. I asserted that Trump’s success was nothing more than the result of the outrageousness of his comments, and that Sanders’ appeal had more to do with an enthusiasm gap for Hillary Clinton than for any real support for him.

If all politics is local, a phrase coined by former House speaker Tip O’Neill, then Colorado’s U.S. Senate race has come home to roost in the coverage areas of our three Jeffco newspapers.

No less than three of the current 12 Republican candidates for the seat held by Democrat Michael Bennet hail from Jefferson County, and that trio’s political careers have been covered closely by our papers.

The odd constitutional provisions that will have the state of Colorado issuing refunds to taxpayers at the same time as cuts have to be made to a variety of government programs in 2016 have long been a source of consternation. Over the last year, a variety of things have been discussed.